OK; this is a trick question. Using prepared dough is one of the easiest ways to introduce very young children (or special needs kids of any age that are functioning at the 18-36 month level) to food preparation. With the right mindset, it is the beginning of a wonderful way to share practical skills, build…… Continue reading Should You Use Pre-Mixed Dough to Bake With Your Toddler?
Category: toddlers
Want Better Self-Regulation in Young Children? Help Them Manage Aggression
You might think as a pediatric OTR, I would be writing a post about sensory-based treatment for self-regulation. And I have in the past. Not today. But I have been an OTR for decades, and what I know about today’s children is that agitated and dysregulated kids often need help managing aggressive impulses and negative…… Continue reading Want Better Self-Regulation in Young Children? Help Them Manage Aggression
Is Your Child With Low Tone “Too Busy” to Make it to the Potty?
Since writing my first e-book, The Practical Guide to Toilet Training Your Child With Low Muscle Tone, I have fielded a ton of questions about the later stages of potty training. One stumbling block for most children appears to be “potty fatigue”. They lose the early excitement of mastery, and they get wrapped up in…… Continue reading Is Your Child With Low Tone “Too Busy” to Make it to the Potty?
Doing OT Telehealth? Start Cooking (And Baking)!
Parents are looking for ways to survive the lockdown without daycare and preschool. Even the easiest child is starting to chafe under the oppression of the COVID quarantine. As an OT, it is my job to help parents support growth and development, but I don’t have to make it feel like work. Enter cooking and…… Continue reading Doing OT Telehealth? Start Cooking (And Baking)!
How To Pick A High Chair For Your Special Needs Child
My first Early Intervention home visits always involve seeing the child sitting in their high chair. Why? I learn a few very important things. I learn how the child is handled by the parent or caregiver, including whether they use the available strapping to secure them. Many don’t, and don’t realize that it is part…… Continue reading How To Pick A High Chair For Your Special Needs Child
Want Your Child to Show Hand Preference (Righty/Lefty?) Where You Place Their Spoon Matters
I get a lot of questions about this issue, based on my experience as a pediatric OTR. Starting at 12 months, some children show a strong hand preference and never look back. Other kids are switching hand use long after 4. Without the existence of disorders that directly affect hand dominance such as orthopedic disorders, cerebral palsy,…… Continue reading Want Your Child to Show Hand Preference (Righty/Lefty?) Where You Place Their Spoon Matters
How To Help Your Toddler Hold a Spoon
Holding a spoon or fork isn’t an intuitive skill for children. Neither is assisting another person, of any age, to self-feed. Parents really have struggled with this issue, and there must be many more out there who are struggling still. This post is intended to help both parties be more successful. Young children use a…… Continue reading How To Help Your Toddler Hold a Spoon
How To Improve Posture In Children With Low Muscle Tone… Without a Fight!
With pediatric occupational therapy going on at home using parents as surrogate therapists, it isn’t helpful to ask a parent to do too much repositioning of children with low tone. First of all, kids don’t like it. Second, kids really don’t like it. I have never met a child that enjoys therapeutic handling, no matter…… Continue reading How To Improve Posture In Children With Low Muscle Tone… Without a Fight!
Potty Training in the COVID-19 Age
Parents are staying home with their toddlers and preschoolers now. All day. While this can be a challenge, it can also be the right time to do potty training. Here’s how to make it work when you want to teach your toddler how to “make” in the potty: You don’t have to wait for…… Continue reading Potty Training in the COVID-19 Age
Is Your Toddler Home From School Because of COVID-19? Save Your Sanity With Fun Routines
Many families have toddlers that are not attending daycare or preschool now. They are at home. All day. They are off their schedules, and sometimes seem off their rockers! Here are some ideas to help their parents retain their sanity: Create a routine for them. This means that they get snacks at a certain time,…… Continue reading Is Your Toddler Home From School Because of COVID-19? Save Your Sanity With Fun Routines
Sensory Processing, Allergies, and Colds: Nothing to Sneeze At!
Here in the US, it is cold and flu season. Most of my day is spend with kids recovering from some upper respiratory virus. A few seem to have a continuous runny nose and cough. They also have an increase in their sensory processing issues. Is this connected, and if so, what can be done?…… Continue reading Sensory Processing, Allergies, and Colds: Nothing to Sneeze At!
Are You a Trauma Survivor AND the Parent of a Special Needs Child?
First, let me say that trauma survivors can be among the most loving and active parents I work with as a pediatric occupational therapist. How do I know they are survivors? Some parents share their histories openly, and some aren’t aware of what their actions and words reveal. Occupational therapists that have worked in psychiatry…… Continue reading Are You a Trauma Survivor AND the Parent of a Special Needs Child?
The Secret to Teaching Young Children to Share
It is the rare toddler that eagerly gives up a desired toy or snack to share with another child. Yup; your child isn’t any different from the great majority of kids out there. You may even have witnessed the “grab-and-go” move, where they take a toy from another child and then quickly escape to…… Continue reading The Secret to Teaching Young Children to Share
Does Your Toddler Fight Diaper Changes? End The Drama Today!
I regularly field questions about this problem from the parents of children I treat. If your 8 to 36-month old is fussy during diaper changes, and you know it isn’t from diaper rash, keep reading, because… I have some information and ideas for you. Parents of kids with sensory processing issues or developmental…… Continue reading Does Your Toddler Fight Diaper Changes? End The Drama Today!
The JointSmart Child Series: Parents of Young Hypermobile Children Can Feel More Empowered and Confident Today!
My first book, The Practical Guide to Toilet Training Your Child With Low Muscle Tone, was a wonderful experience to write and share. The number of daily hits on one of my most popular blog posts Hypermobility and Proprioception: Why Loose Joints Create Sensory Processing Problems for Children helped me figure out what my next e-book…… Continue reading The JointSmart Child Series: Parents of Young Hypermobile Children Can Feel More Empowered and Confident Today!
Why Injuries to Hypermobile Joints Hurt Twice
My new e-book, The JointSmart Child: Living and Thriving With Hypermobility, Volume I, is just about ready to launch. One of the book’s major themes is that safety awareness is something that parents need to actively teach hypermobile young children. Of course, physical and occupational therapists need to educate their parents first. And they shouldn’t…… Continue reading Why Injuries to Hypermobile Joints Hurt Twice
Toilet Training Strategies to Help The Child With A Receptive Language Delay Succeed!
Even after writing my books on potty training, I continue to be aware that some parents (and therapists!) think that there are issues that can completely prevent successful training. One of these issues is a receptive language delay. This is when a child’s ability to comprehend language is not age appropriate. It may be accompanied…… Continue reading Toilet Training Strategies to Help The Child With A Receptive Language Delay Succeed!
How To Get Your Kid To Share (Hint: The Fast Food Rule Will Be Used)
Not a week goes by that a parent or nanny asks me how to get a young child, usually under 3, to share. I get it; it is embarrassing when a toddler rips a toy away from another child, or has a death grip on a toy car while growling at their playdate friend. Sharing…… Continue reading How To Get Your Kid To Share (Hint: The Fast Food Rule Will Be Used)
Hypermobility Or Low Tone? Three Solutions to Mealtime Problems
Many young hypermobile kids, with and without low muscle tone, struggle at mealtimes. Even after they have received skilled feeding therapy and can chew and swallow safely, they may continue to slide off their chair, spill food on the table (and on their body!) and refuse to use utensils. It doesn’t have to…… Continue reading Hypermobility Or Low Tone? Three Solutions to Mealtime Problems
Does Your Child Hate Big Spaces? There is a Sensory-Based Explanation for all That Complaining
When you see it, it looks like Helen Keller crossed with a Roomba. A child enters a space, even a familiar space, and runs the perimeter without stopping to play or examine things. They may trace the room with their fingers, or repeat this process many times before they “land” and engage in some kind…… Continue reading Does Your Child Hate Big Spaces? There is a Sensory-Based Explanation for all That Complaining